This day school will explore why this seminal Nigerian novel, published in 1958, has become such a beacon for post-colonial writing. We will consider how Achebe wrote to reconnect his fellow Nigerians, who were on the verge of independence, with their all-but-eroded culture and examine the novel’s fictional presentation of 19th-century colonial processes at work in Africa. Achebe’s striking narrative methods — not least his use of storytelling itself and the portrayal of his tragic hero — will be central to our study.
Lessons:
